Safety-door for railroad-car platforms



"(No Model.) l v2 sheetssheet 1.

` I'. LAPPIN. y

. l SAPBTYVDQOR FOR RAILROAD GAR PLAT'FURMSQY Y l\I(`1.`291,363. Patented Jan. l, 1884.

ffd .1

NA PEIERS. Pmwuumgnpher. wmhingmn, uc,

(No Model.) A 2`Sheet's-Shet2- Y F. LAP-PIN.

SAFETY DOOR FOR RAILROAD OAR PLATFORMS.

No. 291,363.l

Patented Jan. 1,1884.-

WJTNESSES: JNVETR "y d Nrrnn VSfrA'rEfs .PArEi-s'fr ferien,

l platform and platform-steps in section, and

suspended the sliding door F, provided with 40 the door I provideit with two flanged rollers,

FRANK L APPIN, or BALTIMORE, MARYLAND,

, i. AssIeNon or ONEAIIALE rro SAFETY-'Doos 'FOR RAIL ROAD-GAE PLATFORMS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters P attent No. 291,;6`, dated January l, 1854:,

Application filed November 1, 1883. (No modeh) To all whom, t may concern.-l

Be it known that I, FRANK LArrIN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Baltimore, Maryland, have invented certain Improvements inSafety-Doors for Railroad-Car j Platforms, of which the following is a speeication.'

Myinvention relates to safety doors or gates for preventing the egress of passengers from and their access to railway-cars until a train has stopped, `my invention consisting, first, in combining sliding doors with the body, platform, and steps of a ear in such a manner that the doors can be closed to prevent access to or egress from the car, or can be moved out of the way to a position close to the sides of the car; second,in combining the said doors with mechanism which permits them to be opened or closed by compressed air or water underpressure; and, third, in so combining the said doors with yielding steps and a bolt that the weight of passengers ascending and descending the steps will prevent the doors from being closed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l, Sheet l, is a side view of part of a railroadcar with platform-door; Fig. 2, Sheet 2, aview of a portion of one end of the car, showing the illustrating myinvention; and Fig. 3, a perspective view ofthe steps and appliances connected therewith.

A is a portion of a railroad-car, and B the roof, whioh,as usual, is extended to forma hood, B', projecting over the platform D of the car. A rail, E, is secured at one end to the side of the car near the roof. and extends along the edge of the hood B', and is secured to the latter in any suitable manner. From this rail is grooved rollers a, adapted to the rail, vertical displacement ofthe door being prevented by a lowerroller, b. l To steady the lower end of d, adapted to a rail, c, which is connected at one end by a rod, f, o`r other suitable attachment to the platform` and secured at the opposite end to the car-body in any appropriate manner. This sliding door can be moved to aposition directly in front of the steps G, thereby cutting off all egress from or access to the car, or can be moved back, so as to occupyaposition close to the car-body, where it is out of the way, and detracts but little from the geir eral neat appearance of the car.

It will be understood that there is to be a sliding door on each side of the car.

In order that the sliding doors of all the cars of a train may be closed and opened simultane= ously, Isecureto one edge of each door a plunger, H, adapted to a cylinder, I, secured to the 6o side ofthe car-body, a pipe, J, forming acominunication between the end of the cylinder and a pipa-MK, beneath the body of the car, this pipe Klterminating in a exble tube, M, provided with a coupling, so that the pipes of 65 all the cars may be coupled together and communicate with an air-pump on the engine or tender. Vhen there is air under pressure, or it may be water under pressure, in the pipes, it will act on the plunger H and close the doors, 7o all the doors of allthe cars being simultaneous ly closed; but when the pressure is removed, each door will be opened by acounterbalanceweight, 1L, contained in a tube, z', a cord or chain to which the weight is suspended passing over 75 a pulley and being secured to the edge ofthe door.

The above-described features of my inven` tion may be applied to ordinary ears without any change in the construction of the steps; 8o but in making new cars I prefer to make the steps as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, in which arms m m carry the treads n of the steps, the arms being secured to a shaft, p,which has one bearing, q, on the under side of the platform, and 8 5 another bearing attached to the body of the car. An arm, t, on the shaft is connected to a bolt, o, which is arranged to slide in attachments w on the end of the car. A spring, y, connected at the lower end to the steps and at 9o the upper end to any fixed obj ect,tends to maintain the steps in the position shown in Fig. 2; butthe weight of any person on the steps will depress the same to an extent permitted by a bar, y', and this movement of the steps will 9 5 cause the bolt to be so far moved outward that it will project in front of the door. When the latter has beenopened, therefore permitting passengers to enter or leave the car, it cannot be accidentally closed whilea passenger is on roc the steps.

I claim as my invention- 1. The combination of the body, platform, and steps of a ear with asliding door, F. oonstructed to be moved to aposition in front of or away from the steps, substantially as set forth.

5 2. The combination of thebody, platform, and steps of a ear, and the oounterbalanced sliding door F, with a plunger, H, and cylinder I, and with pipes, through which air or Water under pressure maybe introduced into Io the cylinder, all substantially as speeied.

8. The combination of the body and platform of a car, and the sliding door Fand bolt @,with yielding steps G and mechanism whereby the movement of the steps is imparted to the bolt, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresenee of two subseribing witnesses. f

Y FRANK LAPPIN.

Witnesses:

JOHN E. PARKER, HARRY SMITH. 

